KUWAIT CITY, 2 December 2004 — Kuwait’s income in the first seven months of the fiscal year rose sharply, said the Finance Ministry amid predictions yesterday of a budget surplus in excess of $10 billion.
Figures posted on the ministry’s website show that at the end of October, Kuwait had collected revenue of 5.14 billion dinars ($17.4 billion) - 54.7 percent higher than budget estimates for the whole year.
The state budget for 2004, 2005 estimated revenue at 3.32 billion dinars and spending at 6.3 billion dinars, leaving a projected deficit of three billion dinars.
Oil revenues were projected at $9.3 billion and non-oil income at $1.95 billion for the fiscal year April 1, 2004 to March 31, 2005. But actual oil income in the first seven months was $16 billion — 72 percent over budget projections for the year.
In the budget, oil income is calculated at a highly conservative $15 a barrel, but National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) said the average price for Kuwaiti oil in the first seven months was around $35 a barrel. NBK, the largest bank in the OPEC member state, expected the average price for Kuwaiti oil during the 2004 2005 fiscal year to range from $34.1 to $35.3 a barrel, barring unexpected major swings. Spending in the first seven months was 2.51 billion dinars but its rate normally picks up as the year-end draws nearer.
